On NSSE’s Horizon

NSSE staff members are constantly exploring what will benefit our institutional participants and the field of higher education. Over the next twelve months, NSSE anticipates gaining a better understanding of the nature and effectiveness of survey participation incentives, how response rate levels relate to data quality, the growing use of smartphones to complete NSSE, and the extent of information literacy practices among college students.

Look for additional information about these topics soon, through our Institution Interface, Webinars, or conference presentations. With the NSSE 2013 administration underway, staff members are also busily preparing updated reports for our Institutional Report binders, set for delivery this summer. Opportunities for users to provide feedback about report drafts will be available at the Indiana Association for Institutional Research (AIR) conference this March and AIR’s annual conference in California this May.

If you are a NSSE user interested in providing input on the draft reports, please submit your contact information to nsse@indiana.edu.

Provosts Mention NSSE Use

The 2013 Inside Higher Ed Survey of College and University Chief Academic Officers found that many provosts remain skeptical of massive open online courses (MOOCs), are open to revisiting the tenure process, and few aspire to higher office. The survey also featured questions on assessment and improvement of academic quality in the face of budget constraints. All chief academic officers indicated that they use multiple assessment tools and that they commonly participate in NSSE and the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE). However, most felt that their institutions did not use assessment results effectively for institutional improvement. In addition, provosts at public institutions feel more challenged than their private institution peers in increasing retention and degree completion rates, handling budget shortfalls, and improving student academic performance. To read the full report, click here.

Institution Spotlight: Ramapo College of New Jersey

The Committee on Student Engagement at Ramapo College of New Jersey, after a thorough examination of NSSE results relating to high-impact practices and comparisons to institutions with similar missions, held a series of retreats and meetings to create an inventory of campus experiences that meet student engagement outcomes. The committee then placed these activities on a four-year continuum, and identified what students get out of the experiences. From this, Ramapo College of New Jersey created a four-year development model that included four student learning goals for academic, social, personal, and campus/ civic engagement.

The Committee on Student Engagement also identified Key Points of Student Engagement (KPEs)—high-impact activities that contribute to student learning and achieve the four goals. For example, first-year KPEs are the summer reading program, Convocation, Orientation, and Welcome Week activities. KPEs provide explicit indicators about factors important to achieving student learning goals, and represent institutional commitments to supporting and strengthening student engagement. Currently, the model is available for first-year and sophomore students.

Encouraging Student Participation in NSSE

Since higher response rates generally yield better quality survey data and are important for increasing confidence in survey results, we have posted a number of resources on the NSSE Web site that provide ideas on ways to increase student participation. View available resources, tips, and strategies.

North Dakota State University’s Office of Institutional Research and Analysis announced in the online campus student newspaper, The Spectrum, that the NSSE survey would be administered to first-year and senior students beginning the first week of February 2013. Referring to NSSE as “one of the most useful ways to gauge students’ engagement and satisfaction with their college experience,” the article encouraged participation in the survey so students might “have a direct impact” on shaping the undergraduate experience at NDSU. The article also covers how survey results have been shared across campus for improved advising practices and have proved useful for examining student responses in specific majors. The feature ends with a heads up to students to watch for their invitations to participate along with details on the incentives being offered. To read the article in its entirety, click here.

Announcements

Two New Webinars on NSSE 2013: Last Minute Prep & Answers About NSSE 2013

Now available on the NSSE Web site, the Webinar, Last Minute Prep for Your NSSE 2013 Administration, provides a refresher session on tips to increase student participation in your current NSSE survey administration. Learn more about the updated NSSE 2013, in the Webinar Need More Answers about NSSE 2013? This presentation reviews new questions on the survey, introduces item-by-item comparisons, and provides an overview of the new Engagement Indicators. Presenters also discuss the transition from NSSE Benchmarks to the new Engagement Indicators. To view these Webinars, click here.

NSSE Founder George Kuh Honored

The University of Pennsylvania recently honored NSSE founder, George Kuh, with its 2013 Robert Zemsky Medal for Innovation in Higher Education. The award, given annually, “recognizes individuals whose leadership in higher education has resulted in transformational change in colleges and universities.” To read more about this prestigious honor, click here.

Gnome Promotes NSSE Participation at U Toledo

The University of Toledo has created a clever way to promote the NSSE on its campus, by creating a humorous video featuring their email gnome, who encourages students to check their email and fill out the survey. To watch the video, click here.